


Corruption

by minkthewarrior



Category: The Yogscast
Genre: Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-07-28
Updated: 2015-02-13
Packaged: 2018-02-10 20:19:52
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Major Character Death
Chapters: 8
Words: 9,530
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2038755
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/minkthewarrior/pseuds/minkthewarrior
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Another Yogscast fan fiction! Yay! :D Anyways, after watching Toby and Martyn's Herobirne's Return I was like "I need to make a fanfiction!" So. Toby has foolishly done the unthinkable, let Israphel back into the world of Minecraftia. Will Minecraftia fall forever? Or can the Yogscast stop him once a for all?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hi guys, My name's Mink, or Stacy! Some of you may have seen this fan fiction on fanfiction.net, and that it hadn't been updated in a while. I assure you, i am still working on it! Fair warning, the whole Sips/Zylus relationship is very father/son, there is no actual blood relation between the two in this, despite what they may call each other. The is based on the fact that Zylus once said Sips was "his grandfather" as a joke.

You can't get rid of me that easily, Toby… a voice sprang through the whole of Minecraftia. Toby quickly turned off the commands on his watch and stumbled backwards. What had he just done? He teleported Israphel to another place, away from them, sure, but… he just tangoed with the devil. Shock and panic shook his body like an earthquake and he took a glance across the room. There was Martyn, huddled behind a small pile of boxes, scared out off his mind. Martyn slowly met his gaze with, not just a scared and panicked gaze, but an angry one as well.

"What… did you just do, Toby!? He could have killed us, just then, and you decide to simply teleport him away?" Martyn yelled, standing up with clenched fists. Toby was shocked by his friend's aggression. Wouldn't he be proud of him for doing something brave?

"B-but I… Martyn, I thought I… I thought I saved us…" Toby replied back, choking on his own words. Martyn then moved closer to Toby, his fists clenched even tighter.

"No! You've danger all of Minecraftia! He was going to stay here, because there's no way out of here unless you have commands! And now he's out, probably spreading the tainted sand again! And it's your fault!" Toby's eyes widened at what Martyn just said. Had he really just doomed everyone? Suddenly, a beeping came from both Toby and Martyn's watches. It was Lewis, requesting a group video chat.

"Uh oh…" Toby mumbled and answered it, Martyn soon answering it as well. Toby then saw a list of everyone in the call. Literally everyone was on! From Ridge, keeper of Minecraftia, to even Zylus and Daltos, the only two residence of Newpool that always bicker with each other over a dumb little pool.

"Alright, I think you all know why I called you," Lewis said. Nearly everyone looked at Toby's panel, and Toby felt himself turn red in embarrassment and guilt.

"You think you're a tough guy, don't ya, Toby?" Sips hissed, narrowing his eyes. Toby was about to reply when someone else said something.

"Sips don't be so hard on him… I would have done the same," Sjin said, coming to Toby's defense.

"Yeah, gramps, why are you so hard on everyone?" Zylus shot at Sips, gaining an angry glare in return.

"That's no way to talk to your grandfather, Zylus!" Sips shot back.

"Guys, guys," Lewis began. "We're not here to settle family differences. We're here for a more important matter. Israphel has escaped. We need to get him back," he explained.

"Can't we just teleport him back into where he was?" Rythian inquired, raising an eyebrow. Toby thought he was right. He teleported him out, can't they just teleport him back in? Ridge shook his head.

"No, we can't just do that. He is a dark entity and can only be teleported once in a decade. By certain people, as well. The ones he deem worthy," Ridge explained, letting out a tiny little sigh. Toby nearly gasped, but decided to hold it in. Israphel thought that he was worthy of something so great? What was even great about him?

"That explains a lot, actually… Considering Lewis was the one who teleported him there," Nilesy mumbled for everyone to hear him. Lewis looked a bit bashful and blushed a little.

"There's nothing special about me… I'm just like all of you," he said shyly, looking down. Simon looked at Lewis, quite angry actually.

"Nothing special? You came from the fucking Enterprise! And you were the last survivor! That's pretty damn special to me!" he proclaimed. Lewis just rolled his eyes and let out a little chuckle.

"So, how are we going to handle this?" Duncan asked. Lewis just sighed.

"I don't know… He seems to be pretty dormant at the moment. If anything comes up, contact me or someone else. We may be dealing with an upcoming war, fellahs. Keep your guard up," Lewis announced. Suddenly, from both Zylus' and Daltos' side of the call, there was a loud bang.

"You… heard that too, didn't you, Zylus?" Daltos asked, his gaze suddenly becoming very serious and a bit worried. Zylus nodded.

"Yeah, I'll go check it out," he told Daltos. Sips suddenly looked very worried.

"Then I'm teleporting to you. I'll check it out as well," he said in a hurry.

"No, gramps. I'm not a kid anymore. I don't need you," Zylus growled, and exited the call, Daltos following.

"Ok… Sips, I give you permission to check it out," Lewis ordered, and closed the whole call down. Toby kept staring at his watch, however, not moving. His gaze looked very dazed and saddened, as though he were in some sort of a trance. Then he just broke down into crying, curling up into a little ball of tears.

"It's all my fault! It's all my fault, Martyn, it is!" he choked, his voice nearly drowned out by his tears. Martyn then came over and sat down next to his friend, patting his back but staying quiet. A determined and serious look was on his face as he comforted his friend.

**IN THE TOWN OF NEWPOOL**

Zylus exited the call and sighed, looking at the door. Why was Sips always so protective over him? Sure, they never interacted, but that's exactly why Zylus never wants to meet up with him. He walked outside and met Daltos near the pool they always bickered over.

"Did you hear where the bang was?" Zylus asked, looking at Daltos with a serious and concerned face.

Daltos shook his head in response and said, "Not really. I think it was that way though." He pointed over to Zylus' house, obviously meaning behind it. Zylus unsheathed his diamond sword and cautiously walked over to where Daltos had pointed, Daltos soon following. He then flattened himself against the wall and poked his head around the corner. There he saw a barely off-colored patch of sand that was never there before. It was hard to tell the color change of the sand, so he let out a little chuckle.

"Wow! I'm so scared! It's sand!" he mocked and put his sword back in its sheathe. He was about to step forward when Daltos stopped him, grabbing his shoulder. He turned to then face Daltos.

"Wait a second, Zy. Think about it. Lewis told us his stories of fighting Israphel and how Israphel used tainted sand to make people sick and kill them. And now Israphel is free and somewhere in Minecraftia. What if this is the sand?" Daltos said with a slightly worried tone in his voice. Zylus brushed Daltos' hand off of his shoulder and turned back to the sand.

"Please, you think I'm scared of some dumb sand?" Zylus contended and continued walking. Before he reached the sand patch, a beeping came from his watch. It was a teleport request from Sips to him. Zylus rolled his eyes and pressed deny then stepped on the sand. "See? It's just normal sand!" Zylus called to Daltos. Daltos just shook his head at the fact that Zylus was so arrogant and stupid. Soon enough, a beeping came from his watch as well. It was also a teleport request from Sips to him. He pressed accept and, soon enough, a green light started swirling next to him and Sips appeared as the light disappeared. Sips then turned around to see Zylus on the sand.

"Zylus get off of that sand!" he shouted to his grandson. Zylus looked over at Sips and rolled his baby blue eyes.

"Come on, gramps, it's just sand! It won't do anything!" he shouted back. He then stomped on it and twisted his foot around. "See? Nothing?" Sips just sighed and looked the ground, until he felt the wind pick up a little and looked back at Zylus. A dark fog swirled behind him and when the fog faded, the pale-faced man stood in its place.

"Zylus!" Sips cried, but Zylus didn't listen.

"I'm sorry, can't quite here you over the sound of this sand doing nothing!" he called back. Israphel then smirked and touched Zylus on his shoulder. Zylus stood still for a moment, his eyes widening, then his eyes started glowing purple, his skin turning pale, and he doubled over, hacking and coughing. Israphel then faded away, leaving Zylus lying in the sand. Daltos and Sips rushed over to Zylus. Sips picked up Zylus, who was still shivering and coughing like crazy. Sips looked at his grandson, his eyes starting to water and his lips quivering. He then burst into tears, dropping down to his knees and holding Zylus close to him.

Through the crying, however, Daltos managed to hear Sips choke out, "Call…. Lewis… over…" Daltos then opened the teleport list on his watch and requested Lewis to teleport to him. After a second, the words "Request Accepted" in bright letters was over the screen and the green light swirled next to him, Lewis soon appearing. Lewis then looked over at Sips and gasped, seeing Zylus close in his arms. He couldn't help but feel absolute remorse for his friend. He held his breath and looked away, shutting his eyes tightly so he wouldn't cry. He knew how it felt. He clenched his fists tightly and looked up at the sky, talking to only one person in particular.

"You've hurt one of our own. This is different than some random person. You've hurt countless other people that meant something in our lives, as well. Peculiar, Granny, Lysander, and more. This ends now. This means war, Israphel."


	2. Chapter 2

Sips sat in a chair next to Zylus' infirmary bed, staring sadly at his heavily breathing grandchild. His head suddenly popped down as he stared the ground, biting his lip and fighting back tears.

"This is my fault…" he mumbled to himself, Ridge over hearing him. He walked over and patted Sips on the back.

"Believe me, Sips, it isn't your fault at all. It's Israphel's fault," he said, trying to comfort Sips during his grieving. Sips looked Ridge in the eyes, his brown eyes looking dead as night.

He hesitated, then asked, "Ridge… will he get better?" Ridge's eyes widened slightly, and then he looked at the ground. He had to be honest with Sips, especially now.

"I… I don't know," Ridge began truthfully. "I've… never seen sand taint like this…" Sips looked at Zylus again and sighed. He hadn't been entirely truthful either.

"It wasn't the sand that did this…" he mumbled, which seemed to catch Ridge's attention. How could it not have been the sand? "It was him… It was Israphel… he did this. He just… touched him, and he fell over… and I just stood and watched…" Sips choked out, tears falling again. Ridge looked at Zylus' pale, shaky body.

"This is worse than I thought, then… I have to tell them… Do you want to be in the call?" he asked, just in case Sips just wasn't ready yet. Sure enough, he wasn't and shook his head, just staring at Zylus. Ridge looked to his watch and opened the call list. He called everyone except Zylus and Sips. Everyone answered, too.

"Ridge, good to see you."

"Ridge, do you know where Sips is? He said he needed to teleport to Zylus an-" A panicked Sjin said quickly, but was interrupted by Daltos.

"He's fine… Zylus isn't…" Daltos said solemnly, sounding very hurt and sorrowful as well. Zoey's eyes widened.

"What? What happened to Zylus? Did you actually murder him?" she asked. Rythian sort of chuckled at that, but Daltos looked quite cross.

"No! I wouldn't! That dispute was settled ages ago! It… wasn't me," he explained, his voice cracking a little towards the end. Though you could barely tell, it looked as though Daltos was crying. Everyone was now wondering what had happened. But Toby just knew exactly what happened. And it had  _him_  written all over it.

"Zylus was touched by Israphel," Ridge said, his gaze solemn. "I don't know how to treat this, though… the sand taint was way easier… But this is a curse afflicted directly by Israphel. It has the same symptoms, however, of someone with the sand taint, just more intense. From the looks of it, it looks like it'll…" Ridge trailed off, realizing Sips was still in the room. He walked outside and kept talking. "Sorry. Anyways, from what it looks like, this new curse will… kill him. It's like Israphel is just cutting every string of his life and tying them back together so he could cut them again."

"Listen," Lewis began, staring at each and every panel with confidence and reassurance. "Israphel has attacked one of our own. All of us can agree that this is way too far than killing any random person. I, no, we will not stand for this. This is the time we end Israphel once and for all. If he wants war again, then a war is what he'll get. Are you all with me?" There was silence for a little, until Hannah decided to speak up.

"I'm with you, Lewis," she said. Nilesy nodded, signaling he was too. One after another, everyone agreed. Lewis smiled a little.

"Great. Shall we set up a meeting?" he asked. Ridge nodded.

"It can be at my place. I have a few plans of attack ready," he said. Lewis nodded in agreement. Hannah sort of giggled a little.

"Oh, Lewis, you're being the leader already? I've always loved that about you," he said, making Lewis' face turn bright red. She laughed again, until a bang was heard from Nilesy's and her end. Toby's eyes grew.  _No… Not Hannah, too…_  he thought. Lewis' eyes widened.

"Hannah, Nilesy, stay right where you are. I'm going to teleport," he demanded and exited the call, Hannah and Nilesy following.

"I'm… going too…" the shaky voice of Toby said. Martyn was about to detest, but Toby had already exited the call.

"I'm going to end the call now… good luck to all of you," Ridge said, and ended the call. He went back into the infirmary and searched the cabinets for the same thing he used for the sand taint, hoping to maybe use it to cure Zylus by intensifying the mixture.

**AT OWL ISLAND**

Hannah waited for the beeping from her watch to go until she walked to a good place to scope out where the bang might have been. She looked at her watch, the request for teleportation beaming on the screen. She pressed accepted and waited. Soon enough, her boyfriend had appeared just next to her.

"Where is it?" Lewis asked, looking around cautiously. Hannah shrugged her shoulders, looking around as well. She saw that the runway had a little peach spot on it, realizing it must be the sand. Then, tension then took over her body as she realized that she hadn't seen Nilesy in a while.

"Nilesy?" she called out.

"Huh?" the pool boy's voice sprang back, his head poking from behind the melon farm. Hannah let her tension go at the sound of his voice and hopped down from her trees, waiting for the two men to follow her to the runway. Nilesy slid down the tree and Lewis leaped down, landing gracefully on his feet. She walked over to the shore and decided it was about time to build a bridge to the runway, getting out some dirt just for the moment. She then reached the runway and careful drew her sword, Lewis following her cautious action and Nilesy just behind them, no sword in his possession. Hannah stepped forward a little to examine the sand, but couldn't really see it well because of some bushes.

"Lewis, I'm going to go get a closer look, OK?" Hannah said, walking forward without giving Lewis anytime to detest. Nilesy stepped from the bushes as well, but that seemed to be as far as he'd go. Hannah walked just to the edge of where the sand met with the runway. Evaluating the situation, she called back to Lewis, "It looks like just sand… only a slightly reddish color… Most definitely the work of Israphel."

"Hannah!" she heard Nilesy shriek as she felt the presence of someone behind her. She just knew that it was Israphel, reaching to touch her to give her the same fate as Zylus. She suddenly felt someone ram into her, making her stumble over, away from the sand. She then sat up to see that Nilesy was standing in the place she was just seconds ago, except Israphel was there as well, touching his back. Lewis ran over to Hannah and tried to help her up, but she refused to get up as she helplessly watched her partner then fall to the ground, shaking and coughing like crazy. Already on the verge of tears, she tried to call out to her shivering partner, but all that came out were whimpers. The pale faced man soon faded away, and she began to really cry and crawled to her friend.

"Ni…les…y…" she whined and rested her head on the pool boy, accidentally getting tears on his tan button up shirt. Lewis just stood and watched, his lips quivering a little.

 _Another down…_  a voice sprang through the air, most likely heard around all of Minecraftia.  _The pool boy and the pool bickerer…. What a coincidence… Let's see who else I can get to fall… Enjoy the show, heroes…_  The voice soon stopped, leaving only the sound of birds and wind. Lewis clenched his hand in a fist and began to let tears of his own fall down his cheeks. Two people that he had let become guardians of Minecraftia on the brink of death, and only Notch knows how many more were to come.

"You… will… pay, demon…" he let out in a shaky voice, biting his lip and staring at the ground. This was only the beginning of the war.


	3. Chapter 3

"Today's the day, Toby…" Martyn said, looking over at his partner, who was curled up on his bed. Martyn sighed and walked over to the bed, sitting down next to Toby and patting him in the back. "Hey… It's ok…"

"I don't wanna go…" Toby complained, his cheeks stained with tears. He rolled over so he can look at Martyn, his brown eyes meeting Martyn's blue ones. However, though Toby's brown eyes were clouded with sorrow and guilt, Martyn's were filled with glee and only a hint of sympathy.

"That's okay, Toby… I know you don't. You don't have to," Martyn replied, his eyes filling with more sympathy. He then got up and put his backpack on, as well as tightening his bandana. "Stay safe, 'kay, Toby?" Toby just nodded and turned towards the wall of the tent. Martyn sighed and opened up his teleport list, pressing on Ridge and eventually disappearing.

"Why…" Toby croaked to himself, getting to the verge of tears again. Martyn had just left to go to a meeting. A meeting about how they were going to defeat Israphel. A meeting about how they were going to save the lives that would never have been in danger in the first place if Toby didn't teleport Israphel away. Pity and guilt made Toby's stomach churn and he eventually began to cry, he tears wetting the pillow. Through his crying, he heard a twig snap outside of the tent. "H-hello?" Toby called out. A figure walked in from of the opening of the tent and Toby let out a little shocked and panicked gasp.

"Hello, Toby," the figure replied, smirking a little. It was Israphel.

**AT THE MEETING**

Ridge silently did a head count of everyone in the meeting place. Everyone was there except for Toby. Even those who had lost someone to "The Touch", as he called it, were there. "Where's Toby?" Ridge asked, his gaze drifting over to Martyn.

"He didn't want to come…" Martyn replied, returning Ridge's gaze. "He's been feeling very depressed since all of this happened. I think he feels responsible," he added, looking over at the wall now.

"Oh… He isn't responsible…" Ridge mumbled and looked over at his board. "Anyways, let's get this started. You see, before we go over plans, we need to find out the ties between those who have been taken from us," he explained, looking over at everyone else. Everyone began to mumble until Duncan spoke out.

"Good, then. I came prepared with a map of all the Yogscast members' homes," Duncan announced and got out a map from his coat. "The only problem is, I have no clue where Zoey and Rythian are on the map because of…. recent events," he said simply. Though people looked over at Zoey and Rythian, not a word came from them.

"Alright then," Ridge said and walked over to a position where he could see the map better. He saw that Duncan had circled the homes of the two most recently attacks in a bright red color. "So… what do we know?" he asked aloud for everyone to hear. If he could, just to lighten the mood, he'd put on a Sherlock Homes hat and a pipe and call Duncan Watson.

"Israphel has touched Zylus and Nilesy," Duncan told him. "As he said to all of us, they were the pool boy and the pool bickerer."

"Now why the hell did you say  _were_ , Duncan?" Hannah broke in, bursting out of her chair in rage. "They are both very much alive… right?" she pointed out, her voice starting to crack a little. "Please tell me they're alright…" Ridge sighed and looked over at Hannah, his gaze actually looking quite sorrowful.

"They… they are alive… but it seems they're going through absolute torture… I expect both to go soon," Ridge said truthfully. Hannah just stared for a while and then sat back down, biting her already quivering lip. Sips, who was already sitting next to Hannah, patted her on the back, holding back tears of his own. Duncan looked over at his previous partner, remorse actually flooding over him. Sure, he may have had the teeniest, tiniest little bit of a crush on her all this time but, right now, none of that mattered. She was in pain, and he was going to do something about it.

"Okay, so, I've calculated the distance of Zylus' and Nilesy's homes. They're about 270 kilometers away from each other. Now, the only homes closest to that are my castle, Ridge's place, and Martyn and Toby's home," Duncan explained, using his finger on the map to point to the different places. Martyn's eyes grew very large at the sound of his home.

"Wh-what? M-my home?" he asked, panic then striking him like a bullet. "Toby's there right now…" he mumbled and looked at his watch, going to his call list and pressing Toby. The one single minute it took for it to say "no response" felt like a millennium. Then realization struck him. What if the only reason Toby isn't answering his watch was because of… Israphel? "No! I have to go back, now! Toby's not answering his watch and he's all alone!"

"Then I'm coming with you," Duncan told Martyn, meeting his calm, serious green gaze with Martyn's panicked blue gaze. This made Martyn feel a bit better, but not entirely.

"I'm coming as well," Lewis spoke up, standing up and facing Martyn.

"So will I," Ridge said. Martyn smiled faintly in realization that no matter what happens, his friends will always be there. Luckily, he had a waypoint set up just outside of the border and teleported there, waiting for the others to teleport.

**BACK AT MARTYN AND TOBY'S HOME**

Toby shook in absolute fear. There he was, Israphel, the one he had teleported away in panic. He curled into a tighter ball and looked away as he saw Israphel reach out. He kept shaking and shaking, but nothing happened. He then looked back at Israphel to see him holding out his hand, as though signaling for Toby to grab it. "Wh-what are you…"

"Join me, Toby," Israphel said plainly, keeping his pure red gaze on Toby. Toby was shocked.  _Him_  join one of the most powerful villains of all time? Why? "We're the same," Israphel started, as though he heard Toby's thoughts. "Both of us wanted to do what was best for our friends. And both of us have been betrayed by them."

"My friends have never betrayed me before!" Toby shot back. He gritted his teeth a little and narrowed his eyes. He tried to act as brave and courageous as he possibly could.

"What about Christmas? They all wanted to kill you. Every single one of them. Even Martyn," Israphel pointed out. Toby held in a gasp at this. How did Israphel know? No matter how he knew, he made a very good point.

"But they… were joking!" Toby said back, trying to come to his friends' defense. Israphel then turned his glare cold.

"You could have everything you ever wanted," Israphel tempted. "You could control anything. You can write everyone else's stories."

"I don't need everything! I only need my friends!" Toby countered, his heart beating a tad bit faster than it normally would.

"If you won't join me, Toby, I will kill every last one of your friends very slowly and dreadfully painful. And I'll make sure that they know it was you who brought them their demises," Israphel threatened, his hand then clenching into a fist and brought down to his side again.

"You wouldn't dare!" Toby growled. His heart began to race faster then. What should he do? If he said no, his friends would all die very painfully because of him. If he said yes, he would be able to control everything. Suddenly, a cry from behind Israphel caught both of their attentions.

"Stay away from Toby, Israphel!" Martyn shouted, getting out his gleaming sword. Israphel turned around to see the tree-lover, Duncan, Ridge, and Lewis. At the sight of the former spaceman, he smirked.

"My, if it isn't the great Xephos. The one who put me in the hell I was in before Toby kindly let me out," Israphel sneered at Lewis, his gaze now blazing in hatred.

"Leave, Israphel. Leave now, and this will not get ugly," Lewis said in a slightly raised voice, meeting Israphel's raged glance with a calm and determined one. Israphel let out a low chuckle, sounding as though he had been defeated.

"Fine. However, this isn't over," Israphel said. A few seconds later, the wind swirled around Israphel and his disappeared. Toby could now see Martyn and the others clearly now. Martyn looked at Toby, relief flooding over him at the sight of him. He then ran into the tent and jumped onto the bed, hugging his best friend. Toby hesitated for a little, still a bit shocked, but he eventually hugged Martyn back.

"Toby… I'm so sorry… I should have never left…" Martyn choked out, sounding as though he were going to break into tears.

"No, Martyn… it's fine… I'm okay. It's okay that you left," Toby replied soothingly. A scarily familiar voice then said in Toby's head,  _So Toby… you know the signs. Up for yes, down for no. Choose wisely._  He then realized he had no other choice but to choose. "Martyn, it's ok," he said again, this time giving a little thumbs up, not intended for his friends but for Israphel. He had just chosen.  _I'm so sorry… Everyone._


	4. Chapter 4

Ridge looked over at Toby. His innocent looking smile just wasn't convincing him of anything. Something was wrong with him, and he was going to find out one way or another.

"I'm so happy you're okay, Toby…" Martyn whispered for the thousandth time. "I don't know what I would do without you…" Toby just smiled wider. Lewis and Duncan walked over to the tent. Duncan looked a bit angry, actually, whilst Lewis looked at Toby with relief.

"You sure you're ok, Toby?" Lewis asked warmly, his gaze meeting his Toby's. Toby nodded.

"Yeah. I'm fine. Honest," Toby said convincingly. He then looked over at a teeny tiny patch of sand that Israphel left behind and sighed. "Should you guys go back to the meeting? I mean, it didn't have to stop because of me." Lewis sighed and looked over at Ridge. Ridge stayed quiet for a little, then nodded.

"Right then. Toby, stay safe," Lewis advised and opened up his waypoint list on his watch. Luckily, he had saved one for the meeting place and teleported there. Duncan then teleported to Lewis, leaving Ridge and Martyn with Toby. Martyn opened the teleport list and was hovering his finger over Lewis when he looked over at Ridge.

"You coming, Ridge?" Martyn asked, blinking once in a bit on confusion. Ridge nodded and said in response,

"Yeah. I'll be there in a second," Ridge replied solemnly. He then let his gaze settle on Toby coldly, making Toby feel a bit uncomfortable. He shifted positions in the bed and looked away sheepishly. "Don't think I don't know what you're playing," Ridge hissed.

"Wh-what?" Toby replied, a little shocked. Had Ridge really known already? "What do you mean, Ridge?"

"You're plotting something. I just know it. Something changed since after Israphel left, but I can put my finger on it," Ridge explained. He then got out the teleport list and was ready to press Lewis. He looked back at Toby, narrowing his eyes. "I'm watching you," he said, and disappeared. Toby sat there, a bit dumbfounded by all that had happened. He then sighed.

"You can come out now, Israphel…" he called out, knowing that Israphel was there the whole time. Israphel then popped out from thin air and looked over at Toby.

"You handled that very well, Toby," Israphel praised, walking over to the bed. Toby didn't make any eye contact with him, feeling a bit sad.

"But you heard Ridge. He knows something is up… It's only a matter of time-" Toby began, but was cut off by Israphel.

"Shut up, Toby. You did fine. And for that, I shall reward you," Israphel said and walked outside the tent again. He then turned back to Toby. "Come here," he ordered. Toby quickly rushed over to Israphel and followed him. Not too far from his home he saw two familiar people stand next to each other, looking like just lifeless robots.

"Zylus! Nilesy! Wh-what did you do to them?" Toby squeaked and ran over to them, examining them closely. Their eyes were a strange glowing purple and looked very hollow and dead. They had no emotion on their drooped down faces and didn't seem to be feeling any pain, nor did they seem to be feeling fine either.

"They're fine, Toby," Israphel said and walked over to them as well. He then let out a little heartless chuckle, "In fact, they're more then fine. They're  _mine_." Toby looked over at Israphel, shocked and scared at the same time.

"What are you talking about,  _yours_?" Toby asked, actually a bit scared to find out the answer. Israphel looked over at Toby, grinning.

"They're my puppets. They'll do whatever I say. Of course, they can do what they feel, but they don't care for the petty Yogscast anymore," Israphel explained. He then snapped and the two Yogscast members' eyes stopped glowing purple and faded into a deep crimson.

"Oh, god! How long have I freaking been out, Master?" Zylus asked Israphel, stretching. Nilesy rolled his eyes and crossed his arms, pushed up his glasses a little. Zylus then looked over at Toby, his gaze becoming cold. "Hello, Toby. Enjoying life? I hope you are, because there won't be much left after we burn the place."

"Idiot," Nilesy growled at Zylus. "He's with us." Nilesy then smacked Zylus on the shoulder.

"What the hell?" Zylus shot at Nilesy. He was going to punch Nilesy, but stopped in his tracks. Israphel was looking at him, obviously controlling his actions.

"Now, you two," Israphel began. "There's plenty of time to murder either other later. For now, I have a mission. Make the lives of those who care about you miserable and agonizing." Zylus' face seemed to light up at this and he smiled wickedly.

"You mean I get to mess with grandfather and not get yelled at?" Zylus asked immaturely. Toby suddenly stiffened. Zylus would never call Sips grandfather. Zylus looked over at Toby, as though he knew what Toby was thinks. His wicked smirk frightened Toby, but he guessed that would be something he'd need to get used to.

"From what I can see," Israphel said, looking towards the direction of Ridge's home. "The meeting is over. Quite quick, I suppose. Anyways, yes I guess that is what it means. Now, go run along and play, my children." At that, both Nilesy and Zylus fizzed away into black mist.

"Israphel…" Toby murmured, gaining a glance back at him. "What are they going to do?" Israphel chuckled a little and looked into the forest in front of him.

"They're going to hurt, wound, and kill. They're going to have fun, dear Toby. That's how games work."

**AT SIPS CO. BASE**

The meeting was over. Sips and Sjin were both already home. In fact, they decided to go mining just for fun. Sjin peaked over a corner to see a familiar, green, gleaming ore. "No way…" he whispered to himself and walked to get a closer look. He examined it closer and confirmed his beliefs. "Sips!" he called out to his partner, who was just around the corner mining some copper.

"Yeah?" Sips called back in an emotionless tone.

"I found some uranium!" Sjin said and mined it. He held in his hand and just hugged it. "Come on, Sips… say it…" he chanted, waiting for his friend to ask the "famous question."

"No! I won't ask that dumb question anymore!" Sips yelled back, making Sjin jump a little in surprise. "It's getting very old and… just… So much is going on. You need to stop acting like a child, Sjin. Grow the fuck up." Sjin couldn't help but let out a little sad whimper.

"Oh… Ok… I'll… I'll just go bring the uranium back…" Sjin mumbled for Sips to hear he began to make his way through the cave upwards when he stopped and turned around. "You coming, too?" he asked Sips. His only response was silence, which normally meant no. Sjin then reached the surface and was walking over to the storage building when he was stopped by a chuckle coming from behind him.

"Fancy meeting you here, Sjin," a familiar voice snickered. Sjin spun around to see none other than Sips' grandson.

"Z-Zylus? I-I thought you were still in the infirmary…" Sjin managed to get out. He was way too shocked and confused to even think. Zylus smile widened to a frightening grin.

"Oh, I was. Until someone with great power made me better. He made me stronger, too," Zylus said back. He then sheathed a gleaming diamond sword and launched himself at Sjin. Without thinking, Sjin leaped out of the way, nearly getting his leg cut. He then got out his emerald sword. He looked over at Zylus again, who was beginning to chuckle.

"Stop, Zylus! Wh-what are you even doing?" Sjin stuttered out. Zylus didn't answer. He then disappeared and reappeared behind Sjin, who quickly turned around, only to have his sword knocked far away from him. Zylus pushed Sjin onto the ground and before he could get back up, pinned him down.

"You know what I like doing, Sjin?" Zylus asked, not getting a reply. "Well, fine, stubborn boy. I'll tell you, anyways. Before I kill or hurt someone, I like to chat them up. Because they never-" As Zylus said that, he swiftly brought his sword down and cut through Sjin's neck, aiming in a certain direction to where it wouldn't hit his wind pipe nor his food pipe. Sjin's face then twisted with pain, but he couldn't even let out a whine. "expect it. It's so amusing." After he finished talking, he slowly twisted the sword lodged in Sjin's neck. Sjin let out a little shocked and agonized gasp at this, but he couldn't scream for some reason. Tears began to stream from his eyes as the sword twisted. Zylus then took the sword out and walked off of Sjin. "I can sense Ridge coming. I shall see you later, Sjin. Then we can play." With that, he vanished. Soon enough, Ridge appeared, obviously having a waypoint at Sips Co. He rushed over to Sjin and held up his head.

"Sjin, it's ok. I'm here. You'll be fine…" Ridge serenaded. Sjin's vision began to become fuzzy. He slowly slipped out of consciousness, his eyes closing.


	5. Chapter 5

Sjin's eyes shot open and he quickly sat up. He realized he was lying in a bed in the infirmary. He heard rustling and turned his head in that direction. He saw Ridge rummaging through some things in a cabinet. "Ridge!" Sjin tried to say, but not even a whimper came out. He tried again. Still nothing. And again, nothing. After the fifth attempt, Ridge turned around and saw that Sjin was awake.

"Morning, Sjin. You slept quite a while; I thought that you weren't even going to wake up. You're pretty lucky," Ridge explained and walked over to Sjin.

"What's going on?" Sjin tried to say, yet again nothing coming out of his mouth. Sjin began to panic a little. Why couldn't he talk?

"Sjin… don't even try to. Zylus was so precise…" Ridge mumbled. Sjin gave a quite worried and confused look to Ridge. "Zylus absolutely made sure he wouldn't hit anything major. But… he did hit your voice box beyond repair. I'm sorry Sjin… You're mute." Sjin's eyes widened at this.

"No…" Sjin mouthed, obviously no words coming out. He felt his eyes begin to water as he began to process the information he was just given. He let out frequent little, silent sobs as he realized he'd never, ever be able to talk to Sips again.  _So many things I wanted to say to you, Sips…_  he thought.  _Now I can't say anything at all…_

"Sjin, its ok… Don't be sad. At least we, uh, cut your beard in the surgery, right?" Ridge said, trying to cheer Sjin up. Sjin placed his hand where his long beard used to be and moved it upwards until he felt his beard again. Ridge was right, they cut at least half of his beard off. "The thing was getting too long, anyways," Ridge commented. Sjin smiled and nodded. He then opened up his way point list in his watch and looked over at Ridge. "Yeah… you should go home. I think Sips needs to know." Sjin nodded and clicked the waypoint he called "Home."

**AT SIPS CO.**

Sips sat on the wall that separated Sips Co. from the rest of the world, looking longingly into the horizon. At least it looked like the horizon. It was the middle of the day and it was quite cloudy. He sighed as he thought it was going to rain. He then saw a glowing light just a few blocks away from him, signaling someone teleported there. As the green light faded, Sips' face lit up. Standing there was none other than his best friend Sjin. Sips ran up to Sjin with no warning and hugged him. Sjin just stood there for a moment, then hugged Sips back.

"You're ok, Sjin…" Sips mumbled, hugging Sjin tighter. He looked up to meet Sjin eye to eye. Sjin smiled widely, his deep blue eyes sparkling. Sjin then nodded, confirming that he was ok. Sips then laughed a little. "Come on, Sjin. I haven't seen you for days and I don't even get a hello?"

That made Sjin's expression fall. His cheery mood shifted into a quite gloomy and depressed mood. Sips raised an eyebrow at his partner. "Sjin… what's going on?" he asked, confused and starting to get a bit worried. Sjin then let out a breathy sigh. Normally he would have implanted a grunting noise or moan in there somewhere, but not then. He pulled down the collar of his space suit to reveal bright pink scars across his neck.

"So… you had surgery. I knew that. But why aren't you-" Sips cut himself off. The thought then finally hit him. "No… Sjin, no, you can't… you're not…" Sips mumbled to himself, tears starting to form in his eyes. There was no way, none at all, that his best friend was mute. None. "Please… just say something, Sjin… You wanted me told ask the question… So I will… Sjin, whose ranium did you find? Please… answer it…" Now Sips was beginning to cry. Everything he's ever cared about, everyone, was crumbling right before his eyes. "ANSWER THE DAMN QUESTION, SJIN! PLEASE!" Sips yelled at his friend, rage and sorrow twisting his words. When there was no reply, Sips just gave up. He plopped onto the ground on his knees, giving out loud cries and whines.

Sjin slowly sank to his knees to reach Sips' level. Sips then looked up to meet eye-to-eye with his mute friend. All Sjin could do was stay there and give Sips reassuring glances. Suddenly, Sips just leaped forward and hugged Sjin tightly, his tears falling onto Sjin's spacesuit. Sjin hesitated, and then placed his arms around Sips to embrace him back. Sips let go of Sjin and leaned backwards to look him in the face again.

"Sjin, at least write it down to me. I  _need_  to know who did this," Sips demanded. His voice was shaky, but he stayed strong for Sjin and Zylus. And maybe even himself. But Sjin shook his head. "Sjin, I need to know!" Sjin gave a breathy sigh and brought up his watch, ready to PM Sips. Sips nodded and down at his watch. For what felt like ages for Sips, Sjin typed in a message and sent it, Sips receiving it almost instantly. Sips silently read the message.

 _Sips, it would absolutely tear you apart if I told you who did this,_ the message read. What was that supposed to mean? "Tell me, Sjin," Sip growled, still intently looking at his watch. Sjin hesitated for a while, then type in just three words that, he knew, would send Sips' world tumbling down. Sips noticed he got the message and pressed on it to open the message. He couldn't even gasp. He was absolutely shocked and horrified at those three words.  _It was Zylus._


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WOW, I am SO sorry about the lateness, and length of this chapter! This is a series I really enjoy doing, but sometimes writing long chapters is challenging. ANYWHO, here it is!

No. No, that couldn't be right. Zylus was gone, most likely killed by that hellish sand demon. There was no way that Zylus would _ever_ do something like that. There's just no way.

But then again, Sips had to think about what was happening. They were dealing with Israphel, a power crazed entity that had turned people in zombies before. Surely, it was just that Zylus was possessed, or maybe that he was - no. No, Sips didn't want to think of the latter option.

He felt Sjin brush a hand across his warm, wet cheek. He hadn't even noticed he was crying again. He turned his head away as Sjin tried to wipe his face once again, not wanting any pity at the moment. Sjin slowly drew back his hand, looking Sips in the eyes. They were screaming "I'm sorry". Of course, Sips didn't blame him for what Zylus did. It wasn't his fault at all. He just didn't even know where his head was at anymore.

Sjin let out a sigh and pushed himself upwards. What were they going to do now? Sips was absolutely crushed, Sjin was mute, and everyone else's lives, including their own, stood in the balance. He held out a hand to his friend, who was still silently sobbing. Hesitantly, Sips took the hand, and used it to help himself up. That hand was then placed on his shoulder, and a reassuring smile followed suit. Whatever was happening now, they could make it through. They had each other. Nothing could ever get in the way of that.

**UNKNOWN LOCATION, MOST LIKELY SOLUTION TOWER - STRIFE AND PARVIS**

"I just can't believe this is happening." Strife semi-mumbled, but he knew the mage in the room could hear him. His hands were on the table in front of him. "Sjin's mute, Martyn's lost himself since Toby disappeared, Nilesy and Zylus are still missing thanks to that demon -" He was interrupted by a chuckle from Parvis. The businessman looked over at the other, seeing that he was only sitting in a chair, his legs propped up on the, tossing an orb and catching it for who knows what reason. "Do you think this is some sort of joke, Parvis? People are going to _die_ if we don't figure this out!"

"So what?" Parvis scoffed, continuing to toss and catch the orb. "People die all the time around here. It's not a big deal."

" _Not a big deal??_ Do I even _know_ you anymore, Parvis?" Strife growled, honestly taken aback by this statement. He knew Parvis was dark at times, and philosophical, but this was too much for his fun-loving, carefree acquaintance. "Do you realize how horrible this situation is? Israphel will kill us all, or worse! People are going to start dropping like flies, people we **care** about, and that's _**not a big deal to you??** **"**_

Parvis gripped the orb as it fell into his hand. He swung his legs off of the table, and stood up, staring at the object as if his eyes were glued to it. His other hand found its way into one of his pockets.

"You think I'm not aware of that, William? It's going to be horrible. It's going to be a bloody massacre, even." Parvis' gaze then locked with Strife's angry, but worried green hues. "But can you imagine how lovely it's going to be. I mean, all the power that it takes to make it happen - it's extraordinary!"

Will scanned Parvis, his heart suddenly dropping. Due to the businessman's background in magic, he now realized why he was acting like this, he knew what was wrong. No... Not again.

"Where is it, Parvis?" Will hissed, his gaze turning cold. He was now gripping the table in anger. Yet, the other laughed.

"Please, William, can you not simply say Alexander? After all, that is his first name, right? And since he loves the name Parvis so much, I figure I can take that one." Alexander let out another little chuckle.

Will pushed himself off of the table and walked to come face to face with the grinning other. He felt his fist clenching together. "Where is it?"

"You're going to have to be more specific than that." He chuckled, even if he knew exactly what the other had implied.

 _"Where is your heart, Parvis?"_ He had ignored the other's name request completely. That was the matter of importance now.

"I don't know." Alexander answered. This made Will's heart lurch yet again, because he knew that he didn't lie.

"Who took it?" Strife asked. He didn't even need to ask, really. He feared he already knew the answer to that.

"Who do you think?" The mage narrowed his eyes, his grin widening as well. "Dear Israphel took it."


	7. Chapter 7

**UNKNOWN LOCATION - RIDGE AND BEBOP**

"Are you sure everyone's ready for a meeting?" The robot asked with a worried tone. Yes, it was true that he was a robot, but he was unlike any other made in Minecraftia. The one who programmed him was the demigod Ridge himself. Bebop had no clue what he did, but it was like he was a human. He could feel emotions, feel pain, have morals, just like any human would. But he looked just like a robot. It was like he was just a human soul trapped in a metallic body.

"Of course I'm sure." Ridge replied. He was tidying the new place up. He decided to move the meeting place somewhere hidden since his base was a bit too known, and he knew that Israphel must know the location. "I feel it's important to get everyone up to speed on what's happening. Even if all of this is... well, a lot for humans to take in. We need to know what to expect for the future."

"I guess you're right..." Bebop mumbled. He was openning and closing his hand, getting lost in the robotic screeching sound it made. It wasn't very loud, and most couldn't hear it, but he had better hearing than anyone. The sound soothed him. "How do you do it?"

"Do what?" The demigod was hovering over a crafting bench, thinking of what exactly to make. He was going to make a weapon, but the material to use was beyond him, so he planted his feet back onto the ground and made his way to the seat next to the robot.

"This." His robotic words had urgency painted all over them, and they were cracking under sadness. "How are you so calm in situations like these? I know you're not human, but neither am I, and I'm trying so hard to keep myself together. This all _fucking_ _sucks_ , and you're handling it like any other little hiccup."

Ridge sighed. "I..." He had to think about his words. He knew that Bebop could spot a lie from a mile away, but he also knew that _he_ could hide the truth better than anyone. "It's hard to explain, really. Like you said, I'm not human. I've lived longer than anyone on this planet, and I've seen many things. I'm just... educated, I guess."

Of course it sounded like the truth. It was the truth, in a way. He only left out the part where he had seen this before. Over and over and over.

**MEETING PLACE - EVERYONE BUT THOSE GONE**

It seemed that chairs were emptying more and more every time they held a meeting. There were the beginning two chairs empty, with an added one last time they met. This time, three more chairs were left barren.

"Let's get this meeting started." Lewis annouced, standing up. He quickly glanced at the three empty chairs. While his expression remained solemn, it broke his heart to see them gone. "I suppose we should start with the obvious topic of attendence. Last time we spoke, Nilesy, Zylus, and Toby were gone. It seems that now, Parvis, Zoey, and Rythian are missing. Can anyone explain their absences?"

"I can explain Parvis's." Will spoke, raising his left hand up. He put it back down and stood up, taking a shaky breath before speaking. Everyone looked in his direction. "Parvis's heart was stolen by Israphel." Murmurs errupted throughout the crowd, but he continued talking. "He's still at Solution Tower, though I have put him in a containment unit."

"Why would you do that?" It was Martyn who said this. This sparked surprise in everyone. Martyn had hardly said a word since Toby's disapperance. Though, everyone knew how close Parvis and Martyn were.

"With his heart in the possession of someone else, they can control his actions." Strife explained. "While he can still do as he pleases, his emotionless state has no regards for anything. He would just return back to blood magic, no doubt using us as his source of power. Plus, if the person with his heart orders him to do something, he will obey without question."

Martyn slumped back into his chair. As if his emotional state wasn't already shattered, now one of his closest friends was a tool. Everything was falling apart. **_Everything._**

"How about Rythian and Zoey?" Lewis asked. People looked at each other but no one spoke up. Worry struck the room. Where could they be? This wasn't good at all.

"We could ask Teep." Duncan finally said. Teep was their mute dinosaur, who doubled as their sniping bodyguard. The key word is mute. Of course, they could ask him, but they would get no response. There was also another problem.

"Duncan, we don't know where they are." Kim pointed out. "You said if yourself, no one knows where their base could possibly be. Plus, even if we knew, I'm sure Teep wouldn't want to see any of us." This was all true. Things weren't looking good.

"How about we look for 'em." Trott spoke out. He gestured to himself and the two next to him, Ross and Smiff. "It... wouldn't be the best if everyone focused on finding them when there are other things to worry about. Plus, we're one hell of a team. I'm sure we'll find them in no time."

"Well. Any objections?" Lewis asked. No one said a thing. "Then it's decided. The Hat Crew will look for Zoey and Rythian. I will go to Solution Tower with Will to question Parvis, and see if he can tell us anything." Will nodded in acknowledgement. "Would anyone like to join?"

"I will." Ridge stated. He walked over to Lewis, and join him in look at the rest.

"I-I'll go too." Bebop stated, getting out of his seat to join the other two. No one else spoke out.

"This concludes this meeting. We will meet again at the end of the week. Stay safe, all of you." Lewis looked over at Will, and, though saying nothing, the other nodded, opening up his waypoint list and teleporting to his tower. All who wished to go there requested teleports, and one by one they faded into a bright green light. Everyone began to teleport to their respected homes, all but three people. Hat Films.

"So, boys." Smiff started. "Should we say anything?"

"Nah." Trott replied. "Nothing else has really happened that he doesn't already know about."

"What about the coordinates of this place? I'm pretty sure he doesn't have those yet."

"Oh, yeah, that's right. We'll give those to him next we see 'im."

"We shouldn't stay here for long." Ross butted in. "People might start wonderin' why we're here."

"Right. So, you lot ready to find us a robo girl and an endermage?" Smiff asked sarcastically. It let out a little laugh from all of them. Each of them then opened up their waypoint list, and teleported to one simply named.

**SAND.**


	8. Chapter 8

**SAND - HAT TRIO AND MORE**

"So, these are the new coordinates, then?" The pale figure asked, examining the piece of paper given to him. Smiffy nodded, with a grin on his face.

"Yes, sir." He informed. "It's not very hidden, luckily, so it should be a breeze to find." Israphel nodded. He handed the paper to the pale hooded man next to him.

"Shall I go investigate, lord?" He spoke. A new raspy and dark tone in his voice made Trott and Ross shiver, and Smith only look at him. They all knew that wasn't the person they've grown to know anymore. There really wasn't anything they could do about it.

"Feel free." Israphel replied, waving a hand to let him go. With a dark, smokey haze, the hooded one disappeared.

"Well then, glad we could be of service, your grace or whatever." Ross scoffed. He wasn't really scared of Israphel; they were allies, he could be as snarky and rude as he wanted. Or he couldn't and just didn't care. Probably the latter. "We'll just be on our merry way."

"No you won't." Israphel hissed. He straighted his stance, glaring at the three. "I have a task for you."

"Um, I don't think so." Trott retorted, crossing his arms. Israphel tilted his head, intrigued. They dare defy him, do they? "We're not here to take orders, pal."

"Is that so?" The pale one spoke, his head still tilted. "Then what might you be here for?"

"To cause chaos. Duh." Smith swiftly returned. "That's all we ever want to do."

"Ah, I see." Israphel was nodding his head, as if accepting their statement. Suddenly, he held out his hand in Trott's direction, curling his fingers without forming a fist. The other began gasping for air, clawing at his throat as if someone had wrapped their hands around it. Israphel was choking him.

"Trott!" The other two said almost simultaneously, rushing to hold him as he began to fall to his knees.

"Stop it! Stop it right  _fucking_  now!" Smiff demanded. This only made Israphel's invisible grip grow stronger. Trott's expression became even more pained, his eyes beginning water.  _"WE'LL DO WHATEVER THE HELL YOU WANT US TO, JUST LET HIM GO."_

Israphel's hand opened up, and his arm fell back down to his side. Trott was coughing, one of his hand rubbing his neck while the other supported him from falling down. Ross and Smith instantly kept their hold on him, slowly picking him up as his coughing fit continued.

"Find out any weaknesses you can on Xephos." Israphel barked. He then vanished, presumably meeting his hooded partner at the meeting place. The three looked at each other.

"What have we done?"


End file.
